


hot summer

by yummyda



Category: VIXX
Genre: M/M, OT6
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-02
Updated: 2015-09-02
Packaged: 2018-04-18 15:04:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4710326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yummyda/pseuds/yummyda
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sanghyuk gets a summer job at the beach.</p>
            </blockquote>





	hot summer

**Author's Note:**

> warning for mentions of drowning, fear of drowning and water

The sun hits the roof of the hut Sanghyuk will spend all summer in with a vengeance. It's barely ten in the morning and there it is, blazing away. The third week of June dawns hot and terrible, and all Sanghyuk really wants is to be inside an air conditioned building until the wonderful beginning of autumn, but here he is.   
A summer job sounds great. In theory, a summer job is great. Getting up at eight after only half a week of summer break is not great at all. Sanghyuk's mother, a truly fantastic woman, had thought a summer job would help keep Sanghyuk busy, like he needed to be kept busy when he just finished his freshman year of college. He's had enough busy and he's still got years of education to go.   
Still, he'd said fine, because extra money never hurt anyone. Probably. His mom had a friend of a friend who had a cousin who..etc. knew the guy who runs the shop down at the beach. Now, if a summer job is great in theory, then a summer job at beach is even greater in theory.   
Sanghyuk, squinting at the small shack through the sunlight, thinks he really should stop having theories. 

\---

"Here." Taekwoon says, shoving an apron at him. It's white, with red stripes running down it vertically. Sanghyuk doesn't want to wear it, but Taekwoon seems insistent and it's best not to piss off your boss on the first day. 

"I'll show you where everything is." Taekwoon says. He's not looking Sanghyuk in the eyes, and it unnerves him for some reason. Taekwoon doesn't seem mean or anything, he just seems- well, he's intimidating. 

"Ok," Sanghyuk mumbles in reply. 

Taekwoon goes off on a long list of where things are kept, he shows Sanghyuk the price list and supply sheet. He teaches Sanghyuk how to count the money, and explains how much petty cash should be there in the morning. It's a lot of information, a lot of Sanghyuk nodding even when he doesn't quite understand. Taekwoon seems to pick up on this, because he occasionally narrows his eyes and huffs before explaining something a second time. Sanghyuk is grateful, even if it is a little embarrassing. 

"You don't have to get everything," Taekwoon says at the end of his explanation, "The other store is close, you can come get me if you need to."

Sanghyuk nods, still taking everything in, and Taekwoon nods back, seeming satisfied with the way things are going. Sanghyuk hopes he still feels that way after they open.

\---

A shadow covers Sanghyuk as he sits in front of the counter. His head is down, focused on counting the petty cash for the day on the shelf underneath the counter. He looks up slowly, expecting Taekwoon to be looming over him, and is instead greeted by a incredibly big smile attached to a man that is much too handsome for his own good. 

"Hi, uh, hello." Sanghyuk fumbles out. How suave. The man keeps grinning and Sanghyuk glances down to take what he can see of him over the counter in. He's tall, not as tall as Sanghyuk, but tall. His shoulders are broad and cause his shirt to be a little too tight across his chest. His very nice chest. Shit, he's hot.

Sanghyuk glances up to his face again, and he seems to be barely holding in giggles. Which Sanghyuk is thankful for. 

"I'm Hongbin," he says finally. "One of the lifeguards." 

Sanghyuk hadn't even noticed the red cross on his shirt, he'd been too distracted imagining what was under the shirt. 

"Sanghyuk." He says. 

"Taekwoon's new underling?" Hongbin asks, and Sanghyuk doesn't know him, but he can still tell he's being teased. "Wanna know what happened to the last one?" 

Sanghyuk narrows his eyes, and he's about to come back with something great, when an arm swings over Hongbin's shoulders. 

"Why are you being so rude to the poor thing?" 

Hongbin rolls his eyes, mouth pulling down in distaste, and he steps out from underneath the other man's arm. 

"I wasn't being rude." 

"Right," the man says, "and I wasn't born yesterday." 

He turns his eyes to Sanghyuk, who has been busy noticing that this man is also grossly hot. Do they only have hot lifeguards? 

"I'm Hakyeon," he says with a smile, reaching his hand over the counter, "nice to meet you." 

"Sanghyuk." He reaches up to shake Hakyeon's hand, and sees Hongbin rolling his eyes again. It must be a habit of his around Hakyeon. 

"I'm the head lifeguard here," Hakyeon says, "let me know if you need anything. I used to work for Taekwoon before I became a lifeguard, I know how difficult he is." 

Sanghyuk thanks him, and then he's walking away briskly with Hongbin in tow. 

\---

It only get hotter as the day goes on. There's not enough people in the first few hours for it to distract Sanghyuk from how sweltering it is. He thinks he can see heat waves rising from the counter. He's counted the money at least three times, even though he's only sold one bottle of water (to an old man, walking an adorable dog who probably needed the water more than him). He's gone over stock, and taught himself where things are, and now he's just sitting in the miserable heat. Sanghyuk pouts, this is no way to be spending a summer morning. 

"Sanghyuk!" someone yells from out of sight, and boy, he must be spacing out more than he thought to not notice the group of lifeguards bounding up to him. Really, Hakyeon seems to be the only one bounding, along with someone he hasn't seen before, but someone he really wouldn't mind seeing again. There most be some kind of lifeguard law about being ridiculously hot. 

"This is Jaehwan," Hakyeon announces, "and this is Wonsik." 

Jaehwan winks, actually winks, at him, and Wonsik offers a much less mortifying greeting. 

"I thought you should know all of us, since we'll be spending all summer together." Hakyeon says, looking particularly pleased with himself. 

\---

"You met Hakyeon." Taekwoon says, a scowl on his face. 

"Yes." Sanghyuk answers hesitantly.

Taekwoon makes a unhappy noise, it reminds Sanghyuk of a small dog and he accidentally smiles, which only makes Taekwoon scowl more.

"Don't let him distract you." Taekwoon says, with finality, like he's already had enough of the subject. 

Sanghyuk can't help himself though. He's curious about Hakyeon, and the rest of them, but Hakyeon stands out the most, with how loud he is. 

"Hakyeon says he used to work for you," Sanghyuk starts questioningly, but he's interrupted by Taekwoon snorting. 

"I wouldn't say he worked," Taekwoon shakes his head, glaring at the counter top, "he talked. All he does is talk." 

"He invited me to a party, with all of them, tonight." 

Taekwoon glances up at him, still glaring. 

"I don't know if I'm going yet." Sanghyuk adds, quickly. 

"He'll just talk more if you don't." 

Sanghyuk guesses that is Taekwoon's way of saying he should go, and really, Sanghyuk is considering it, but he doesn't know Hakyeon, or any of them. He's been known to enjoy a party, and a bonfire is always a good time, but he still doesn't know if it's a good idea to go. Hakyeon seems the type to invite someone because it sounds like a good idea in the moment, and he talks so much he probably didn't even think about it. 

"Hey," Taekwoon says, pulling him out of his thoughts, "let's finish, I want to go home." 

Sanghyuk nods, returning to his count, getting out of here sounds like the best decision right now. 

\---

By the time Sanghyuk gets home he doesn't feel like doing anything. His bed is calling to him, and there's a movie he's been meaning to watch. It doesn't seem worth it to head back down to the beach only a couple hours after he's left it. 

He can’t help but wonder though, why had Hakyeon invited him? Why had none of the others protested when he did? Sanghyuk isn’t bad to be around, he supposes, but they’re all friends. All friends and all older than him, and all over the top hot. Not that Sanghyuk finds himself unattractive, he thinks he’s pretty hot. Still, if he compares himself to Hongbin, he’s coming up short.

Earlier, he’d seen Honbin coming out of the water, shirt off and water glistening on his torso in the too bright sun. His jaw had almost dropped, Hongbin was unreal. Then out had come Hakyeon, soft and smooth looking where Hongbin was defined, but beautiful in a way Sanghyuk can’t explain. Hakyeon looks so delicate, and it’s so strange on someone so big.

The moment had been ruined by Jaehwan, diving into both of them, and Wonsik up in the life guard chair, shaking his head, and blowing his whistle at them. He could hear Wonsik saying something about “bad examples”, and see the rest of them laughing.

They’re all hot, older than him, and friends. All reasons Sanghyuk should avoid going down to the beach, but they seem to have so much fun. Sanghyuk is experiencing his first summer as a college student, and even if he’s home, he should be having fun, right? He’s seen enough movies to know that.

Hakyeon had said they meet at the beach at sunset, and from his place on his bedroom floor, Sanghyuk can see the sky beginning to turn colors. He makes a decision, and later he’ll decide if it’s good or bad, but for now, he’s going back to the beach.

\---

The sky above the water is bright orange, surrounded by purple and blue, and it's not something Sanghyuk would normally pay attention to, but he notices now. 

He hadn't exactly rushed on his way back to the beach, he didn't want to be winded or seem like he was to eager when he got there. It's silly to worry about, there's nothing wrong with being excited, but he still stops to take in the sunset, strolls slowly down to the bonfire he sees roaring a ways down. 

Hakyeon sees him first, and he jumps up from the sand, stumbling just a little. Sanghyuk can see a case of beer and a bottle of something from where he is, and he giggles a little as Hakyeon weaves through nothing to get over to him. 

"Sanghyuk!" he yells, throwing his arms around Sanghyuk's neck when he gets to him. "I was worried you wouldn't come." 

Hakyeon gives him a disapproving look as he tugs him over to the fire, plopping down next to Taekwoon and pulling Sanghyuk with him. Taekwoon's cheeks are rosy, and he nods at Sanghyuk, ignoring Hakyeon as he leans onto his shoulder. 

"Sanghyuk is late." Hakyeon announces. 

"How awful, how dreadful." Jaehwan says dramatically, clutching his hand to his chest. "How will we go on?" 

"Hush." Hakyeon scolds, but Hongbin and Wonsik are laughing so loud Jaehwan doesn't seem to notice. 

"You're not late," Wonsik says, shaking his head, "Hakyeon just got here too early." 

"Made me come too early." Taekwoon pipes up. 

Hakyeon groans, rolling away from Taekwoon to lean on Wonsik. 

"Cruel, all of you." 

Sanghyuk joins in on the laughter this time. 

\---

The breeze on the beach gets stronger as the night goes on, and Sanghyuk wishes he had brought a jacket. Even the alcohol and the fire isn't enough to keep him from shivering every now and then. 

Wonsik is wearing a shirt with the sides cut out, it's distracting, how much Sanghyuk can see of his skin. Wonsik doesn't seem to notice him staring, but Hongbin does. 

"Nice view." Hongbin says, grinning a little to wide for Sanghyuk's comfort. 

"What?" he stutters out. 

"Wonsik," he answers, "you know, it feels even better than it looks." 

Sanghyuk's head whips around to stare wide eyed at a still grinning Hongbin. 

"It's true, he's got a nice body." 

Sanghyuk's mouth falls open, he can't think of anything to say, and he's sure he looks great sitting there mouth agape and looking stunned. 

"You wanna know something else?" Hongbin leans in conspiratorially, and Sanghyuk nods before he can think, "You could touch, if you wanted too."

Sanghyuk continues to stare at Hongbin, not sure how to respond. He can't think of anything he could possibly say to that, or why Hongbin is saying that to him in the first place. 

Wonsik squeals, saving him from the awkward silence, and they both turn to see Jaehwan grabbing at his sides, fingers wiggling in an attempt to tickle. Wonsik takes off, running down to the water, and Jaehwan follows, though he doesn't seem to run as quickly. 

"Hongbin!" Jaehwan hollers, "Help!" 

Hongbin laughs, and as he stands up he trails his hand up Sanghyuk's back, lingering on his shoulder before he walks calmly after them. Sanghyuk shivers, but not from the cold this time. 

He doesn't notice that Hakyeon has scooted next to him until the other places a hand on his thigh, just a little too high up to be casual. He barely avoids squeaking in surprise. 

"I hope Hongbin was being nice," he says accusingly, sending a glare down to the three of them playing at the waters edge. 

"He wasn't being mean." Sanghyuk says, it's surprisingly easy to talk to Hakyeon, especially after Hongbin. 

Hakyeon narrows his eyes, "He's sneaky." 

Sanghyuk laughs, leaning closer to Hakyeon as he does, and Hakyeon doesn't seem to mind. His hand is still on Sanghyuk's thigh, and their knees knock together when Sanghyuk gets closer. He can see Hakyeon smile out of the corner of his eye, and he's not sure if it's because of him, or the three down by the water, splashing each other and yelping at how cold the water is. 

Sanghyuk glances over to Taekwoon, he's been so quiet he almost forgot he was there. Taekwoon is curled up on the sand in front of the fire, seemingly asleep. 

"Cute, isn't he?" Hakyeon asks, catching the direction of Sanghyuk's gaze. 

Sanghyuk wouldn't agree, normally, but in his sleep Taekwoon does look cute. His lips just barely parted as he takes in deep breaths, chest moving up and down slowly. He looks peaceful, soft. 

"We have to wake him up." Hakyeon says, a glint in his eye, much too gleeful for the situation. 

Hakyeon gets up, goes and gently sits down next to Taekwoon. For a moment he does nothing, simply smiles down at Taekwoon, a gentleness in his face that completely contradicts his intentions. He leans down, nuzzling into Taekwoon's neck, and Sanghyuk feels like he's intruding by looking at them, it seems so personal, so familiar, but then Hakyeon blows a raspberry into his neck. 

Taekwoon moves so quickly it's almost like he wasn't asleep. He jolts up, grabbing Hakyeon around his middle and throwing him down into the sand. Taekwoon throws one of his legs over Hakyeon, straddling his thighs. Sanghyuk can't see his face from where he is, but he's sure Taekwoon is furious. Hakyeon's wrists are in Taekwoon's hands, and he's surprised to see Hakyeon is still smiling. Not as surprised as he is when Taekwoon bends down to cover Hakyeon's body with his own, pressing Hakyeon's wrists against the sand. Hakyeon's head tilts to the side as Taekwoon noses against his neck. He must bite down, because Hakyeon gasps, and Sanghyuk can see his hips push up against Taekwoon's, and if he felt like he was intruding before, it's nothing compared to how he feels now. 

Hakyeon lifts his head up, whispering into Taekwoon's ear, and Sanghyuk can see Taekwoon's ears turn red before he's rolling off of Hakyeon, looking absolutely mortified as he avoids Sanghyuk's eyes. Smug, Hakyeon sits up, and completely opposite to Taekwoon, looks directly at Sanghyuk. 

Sanghyuk is baffled, prior to this moment he had thought Taekwoon had merely tolerated Hakyeon, but Taekwoon had been on top of him, and his actions didn't seem new, Hakyeon hadn't been surprised or offended by them. This night is full of too many things Sanghyuk doesn't understand. 

Hakyeon is still looking smug, and just as Sanghyuk is sure he needs to do something to stop that look, Wonsik comes up behind him and wraps his arms around him. He's wet, and probably cold, from splashing around in the water. Sanghyuk bursts out laughing as Hakyeon starts yelling, twisting around to smack Wonsik in an attempt to get him off. His laugh turns abruptly into a scream, too high pitched, as Hongbin does the same to him. He hears Jaehwan scream, and figures he must've tried the same on Taekwoon, but he can't be bothered to look. He has priorities, and they are getting a freezing, wet, Hongbin off him.

\---

Sanghyuk's alarm goes off, and he groans, rolling onto his stomach and pulling a pillow over his head. Getting up is the last thing he wants to do, he really should've been more insistent about leaving, but it's so hard to argue with a determined Hakyeon. It wasn't until Taekwoon woke up enough to point out that they all had to get up early that he managed to leave, stumbling all the way home and falling asleep almost immediately. 

The alarm keeps blaring, Sanghyuk's pillow no match for it, and he eventually gives up, throwing his arm out to stop it. If he gets up now he can have a long shower, he usually only gets a couple minutes before he has to rush off. A long shower does sound nice, even if it isn't as nice as sleeping in. 

Sanghyuk turns the water on just a touch hotter than he normally does. The lack of sleep makes his muscles tense, and he thinks he's got a bruise from when someone tackled him last night. He can't help the way his mind wanders, and he gets stuck on Hongbin's voice, sounding so smug, when he caught him staring at Wonsik. 

Sanghyuk thinks Hongbin is more than a little infuriating, but surely he wasn't wrong, touching Wonsik would be better than staring. Hell, touching any of them would be better than staring. Sanghyuk runs his hands over his abdomen, looking down at his own muscular structure. It’s not bad, he’s got some definition, but it’s not the same. 

\---

The sun is going strong enough by the time Sanghyuk gets to the beach that he almost regrets the too hot shower. He can see the beginning of heat waves on the roof of the shack and he grimaces. It's going to be a long day. 

He spots Taekwoon as he gets closer, his forehead laying against the door as he tries to turn his keys. Sanghyuk smiles, trying not to laugh, at least he's not as bad off as Taekwoon. He has a feeling Hakyeon didn't let him go home as easily as he let Sanghyuk go. 

"Need help?" Sanghyuk asks when he gets next to Taekwoon. Taekwoon turns, keeping his forehead to the door, and levels Sanghyuk with an impressive glare. Sanghyuk has to bite his lips to avoid laughing, a much harder thing to do now that he can see Taekwoon up close. 

Taekwoon grumbles something unintelligible, pushing off the door and handing the keys to Sanghyuk. Sanghyuk pats him on the shoulder, a small attempt at sympathy, since he can't stop himself from laughing. 

"Shut up," Taekwoon grumbles slightly louder this time, following Sanghyuk inside. 

\---

"So," Sanghyuk starts, and Taekwoon doesn't even open his eyes, but he does make a vague humming noise, "I was wondering about you and Hakyeon." 

Taekwoon opens his eyes at that, but the rest of him stays the same, arms crossed over his chest, leaning back in his chair with his head resting on the wall behind him. 

"Don't wonder." 

Sanghyuk glares, completely unsatisfied with Taekwoon's fake answer. 

"We're friends." Taekwoon answers, glaring back. 

"Right," Sanghyuk snorts, raising his hands up to make air quotes, "friends." 

"Jealous?" 

Sanghyuk jumps up, letting out a shrill shout that only makes Taekwoon glare more. He seems completely unsurprised by Hakyeon showing up out of the blue. It must be something you get used to. 

"No," Sanghyuk splutters, "and you should announce yourself." 

"So cute." Hakyeon coos. 

"Well, you should." Sanghyuk says stoutly, trying his best not to be embarrassed. 

"You didn't answer my question," Hakyeon smirks, it makes Sanghyuk feel quite unsettled, "are you jealous?" 

"Stop it." Taekwoon says. 

Sanghyuk glances over at him, his eyes are closed again, head tilted back against the wall, but there's the smallest smile on his face. 

"Stop what?" Hakyeon whines, "I was just hoping someone might finally appreciate my attention." 

That startles a laugh out of Sanghyuk. This Hakyeon, who is silly and dramatic, this is what he's used to. The Hakyeon that smirks at him, that little glimpse of something else, Sanghyuk doesn't think he's ready for that. 

"Oh!" Hakyeon exclaims, "Sanghyuk, we're going swimming tonight you have to come with." 

That must've been the actual reason he'd come over to the shop, not to tease Sanghyuk, but to invite him to something else. Sanghyuk wants to say yes, if anything swimming will mean all of them with their shirts off, but, well, he doesn't know if he can say yes. 

"You have to come." Hakyeon says, because apparently Sanghyuk is taking to long to answer. 

It's not that Sanghyuk doesn't want to go, he'd had fun last night, and he seems to have fun whenever he's around them all, it's just that he doesn't want to admit that he can't go swimming with them. 

"You're taking to long to answer." Hakyeon's hands are on his waist now, and he looks a little concerned. 

"Uh," Sanghyuk starts, unsure how he's going to answer without making himself look bad, "it's not that I don't want to." 

"What, you can't swim?" 

Hakyeon means it as a joke, but Sanghyuk's face falls, and Hakyeon catches on immediately. 

"Oh," he says, and then more excitedly, "oh!" 

Sanghyuk doesn't know what there is to be excited about, he can't swim. He's tried learning, but he sinks like a rock every time he gets in the water.

"That's not a problem," Hakyeon says, "we'll teach you." 

Sanghyuk grimaces, but Hakyeon is chatting away about how swimming is easy and fun, and Sanghyuk already knows he's in for another long night. 

\---

There are a lot of things Sanghyuk regrets, like his hair cut in middle school, or that time he tried to rebel by not eating breakfast for a week, and the list goes on. Tonight is pretty high on the list already, and he's not even to the beach yet. Sanghyuk's not worried about drowning, there will be four life guards there, at least one of them should be competent enough to save him. He's worried about how ridiculous he's going to look, flopping around in the water, looking, and sounding, like a chicken trying to fly. 

Water is scary. The ocean is vast, and full of sharks and weird ass deep sea creatures. Sanghyuk doesn't want to fall victim to some strange fish. The more he thinks of it, he doesn't really want to swim at all, but Hakyeon had seemed so excited, and Sanghyuk thinks he looks too cute to turn down. Which, honestly, may be the real problem here. Still, he keeps walking to the beach, and if he walks a little slow, he can't blame himself for it. 

He spots Wonsik first this time, he's out in the water, bobbing up and down as the water moves him. He looks comfortable, laughing and splashing at Hongbin as he swims closer. Taekwoon and Hakyeon are still on the beach, Hakyeon leaning against the others shoulder as they talk. Sanghyuk squints, looking closer at the area they're all in, but he can't seem to find Jaehwan. 

"Hey," Sanghyuk calls in greeting, waving to the two on the shore. 

Hakyeon runs up to him excitedly, he's beaming, and Taekwoon waves back, so calm he makes Hakyeon's enthusiasm stand out even more. 

"You're here!" Hakyeon says, grabbing his arm and tugging him over to Taekwoon. "I'm so glad." 

"What? You thought I wasn't gonna show up?" Sanghyuk laughs, letting himself be pulled along. 

"I had my concerns," Hakyeon glances back at him accusingly, and Sanghyuk really has no idea what he means, but it does make him laugh again. 

"Where's Jaehwan?" Sanghyuk asks, he still hasn't seen him, and it seems odd, since they're always together. 

"Out there." Hakyeon answers, motioning towards the water. 

"But where?" 

"Look at Wonsik." Taekwoon says, he's smiling and Sanghyuk is suspicious. 

"I saw Wonsik but I didn't see-oh," Sanghyuk cuts himself off, he does see, if he looks very closely. Jaehwan's head is on Wonsik's shoulder, like he's clinging onto his back. 

"I wonder how you think Wonsik's head looks." Taekwoon says, smiling more now. 

"He does have a big head," Hakyeon says, nodding understandingly. 

Sanghyuk glares at them, and all it does is make them laugh. In his defense, Wonsik actually does have a big head, and it's getting dark. 

"If you're done making fun of me," Sanghyuk starts, and is interrupted by Hakyeon clapping his hands excitedly. 

"It's swimming time!" he yells. 

Sanghyuk groans, that's not really what he wanted. 

"Shoes off, let's go." Hakyeon says. 

Sanghyuk bends down, untying his shoes before he takes them off. He doesn't normally untie them, but Hakyeon doesn't know that, and he wants to dawdle as much as possible. 

Untying shoes isn't a long process though, and they're off before he's ready. He can't put off getting in the water for too long without Hakyeon noticing what he's doing, he's sure of that. So, he takes a deep breath and stands up, facing a much too happy Hakyeon. 

"First," he says, all business like, "you have to get used to the water." 

Hakyeon walks into the water, and Sanghyuk can see him shivering but he keeps going until he's waist deep. 

"C'mon." He calls over his shoulder. 

Sanghyuk walks to the water's edge, dipping his toe in delicately. 

"It's cold!" He yelps, jumping back. Hakyeon laughs, and then disappears under the water, resurfacing a moment later, further out. 

"That's why you have to get used to it!" 

"Ridiculous." Sanghyuk grumbles, but he starts again. He walks into the water slowly, pausing every other step. It's so cold, he doesn't understand how they're all in and enjoying themselves. 

"It'll get better." Hakyeon says, smiling as he walks over to Sanghyuk. He's in up to his thighs, and it's not getting better. He frowns, and Hakyeon puts a hand on the small of his back, which would be comforting if Hakyeon weren't wet and freezing. 

Hakyeon uses the hand to guide him, keep him going when he wants to stop, and before he notices he's in up to his waist. It's distracting to have Hakyeon's hand on him. His fingers are spread so it covers as much of his back as possible, and Sanghyuk focuses on the feeling rather than the cold of the water. 

"Put your arms down." Hakyeon says gently, and it's just then Sanghyuk notices that he's got his elbows tucked tight to his sides and his hands clasped in front of his chest. He nods, slowly moving his arms down, but the second his fingertips touch the water he brings them right back up.

"It's cold," he whines, "couldn't we do this in warm water?" 

"Would you like to take a bath together?" Hakyeon teases. He's stopped pushing Sanghyuk forward, but he hasn't moved his hand from Sanghyuk's back. 

"Maybe I would." Sanghyuk says, his face turns red, and he hopes Hakyeon can't tell. 

Hakyeon laughs, and he rests his other hand lightly on Sanghyuk's stomach. 

"Maybe we will, but first, you have to get in the water all the way." 

Sanghyuk glances at Hakyeon, it's impossible to tell if he's joking or not, he's got the same small smile he's had since started guiding Sanghyuk further into the water. Hakyeon is turned more towards him now, because of the hand he has on his stomach. Sanghyuk's heart is racing, and he's getting close to just sinking into the ocean to avoid Hakyeon's hands on him. 

"Put your arms down." Hakyeon repeats, and as much as Sanghyuk doesn't want to, he also wants to get this over with. 

Sanghyuk plunges his hands down, the water comes up to his elbows, and he swears. Hakyeon keeps laughing, letting his hands fall from Sanghyuk and he drops down under the water again, coming back up quickly. 

"You know, if you just get it over with its better than drawing it out." 

"That's easy for you to say," Sanghyuk whines, "you do this all the time." 

"Which means I know it works." 

"What if there's an undertow and I get pulled under and die?" 

"I'll save you." 

Hakyeon is only barely holding back his laughter, and Sanghyuk will admit he's being a little ridiculous, but the ocean is treacherous. It's natural to be afraid. 

Sanghyuk sticks his tongue out at Hakyeon, and does his best impression of being brave. He takes one big step forward, and then another. The water is coming up to his chest now, he has to stop, he has to be able to touch the bottom, but he wants to prove he can handle himself, so he takes one more. 

His foot doesn't touch anything. He can't feel the sand and rocks underneath him. Sanghyuk can feel his heart hammering, he can hear it. He throws his arms up, splashing uselessly as he tries to stay above water. He gulps in a deep breath, and closes his eyes tight. His mind is blank, he can't think of anything that would help him. His chest feels tight, an odd warmth washes over him the more the panic sets in. 

He feels something underneath his arms, hooking around his shoulders. His being dragged backwards, and his first instinct is too kick, but then he hears a voice.

"Sanghyuk, Sanghyuk, it's okay." 

His back is pressed to Hakyeon's front, and somehow Hakyeon is moving them both closer to the sand. It only takes a second for Hakyeon to be able to stand, but he doesn't let go of Sanghyuk. He keeps them moving, steadily, until Sanghyuk is completely out of the water. 

Sanghyuk is shaking so hard he can see the water droplets coming off him. Hakyeon doesn't say anything, just keeps a hand on the small of his back and ushers him towards the fire Taekwoon has built. The others must see him coming because there's a hush around them that is abnormal. 

Wonsik comes over with a towel, wrapping it around Sanghyuk's shoulders and helping Hakyeon lead him to a seat next to the fire. Hakyeon sits on one side of him, wraps his arm around Sanghyuk, and Sanghyuk lets himself lean onto Hakyeon. 

Taekwoon busies himself making the fire bigger, and Sanghyuk can tell they're all worried about him, but he can't say anything. He's safe, he knows that, but he can still feel terror in the pit of his stomach. He was so sure, so very sure, that he was going to die. 

He doesn't notice he's started crying, not until he feels Wonsik pressed against his other side, and he hears Hakyeon's voice trying to soothe him. 

"I'm scared." Sanghyuk whispers. 

"I know," Hakyeon says, "we don't have to do that ever again." 

Sanghyuk nods. He doesn't know if he never wants to try again, but he knows Hakyeon means what he says, and that, it's important to him. 

"Knock knock!" Jaehwan yells, and despite himself, it makes Sanghyuk laugh. It makes everyone else groan, but Sanghyuk is curious. 

"Who's there?" He asks, his voice raspy. 

"Boo." Jaehwan says, and he looks so pleased with himself that Sanghyuk has to keep playing along.

"Boo who?"

"It's just a joke, don't cry!" Jaehwan says, and he starts laughing so hard that it's impossible not to laugh too. 

\---

Sanghyuk sleeps easy that night. He expects to be too jittery, or to wake up from terrible nightmares where Hakyeon didn't save him, but he doesn't. He gets home, lays down, and is asleep before he even has time to turn his alarm on. 

The sun filters in through his curtains, and he wakes up feeling too warm, but he's rested. It's rare he feels this rested before a day of work, and he's thankful for it. He rolls over, glancing at his clock and oh- shit. 

Sanghyuk jumps out of bed, his blankets wrap around his legs and he stumbles over to the door, leaning against it while he shakes his blankets off. 

"Fuck," he mumbles, moving quickly across the hall to the bathroom. He tries to grab his toothbrush from the cup on the side of the sink, but his body hasn't caught up with his mind yet. The cup is loud when it falls to the tile floor, he hopes his mom is already up. He glare at himself in the mirror, turning the faucet on and splashing his face with water. That and a quick brush for his teeth and hair is all he really has time for. He might still make it to work on time if he runs. 

\---

Sanghyuk is out of breath when he gets down to the beach. Taekwoon is already there, and he's with a customer, a mother and her child. Taekwoon is crouched down, talking with the child while the mother stares down at them, a proud smile on her face. They're talking so quietly that Sanghyuk can't even hear them when he gets close, but the child sees him, and jumps behind their mother, clutching at her pant leg. Taekwoon turns to glare at him, and Sanghyuk just shrugs. 

"I'm sorry," Taekwoon says softly, "I know he's big and scary."

Sanghyuk scoffs, he is hardly scary. Big, maybe, but scary? He doesn't think so. The mother reaches back and pats the child on the head, thanking Taekwoon for being so nice as they walk away. 

"You scared them away." Taekwoon scowls, turning to Sanghyuk. 

"I'm not scary." Sanghyuk insists. 

"Then how come that kid hid from you?"

"I don't know! Maybe it was you glaring at me." 

That makes Taekwoon glare more, Sanghyuk definitely doesn't have a winning argument here. He's just not that great with kids, especially not compared to Taekwoon. Taekwoon loves kids, and Sanghyuk only manages to be awkward around them. 

"Get to work." Taekwoon says. He doesn't mention anything about Sanghyuk being late before he starts walking off for the other store, which Sanghyuk is thankful for. He doesn't need two reasons for Taekwoon to be mad at him. 

It's going to be a slow day, Sanghyuk can tell. It's too hot to be outside, even at the beach. He doesn't mind the slow days as much as he used to, because now a slow day means that he gets to talk to everyone, instead of being too busy to think. 

Sure enough, Wonsik comes running over. It's too early to be his break time, but there's no one in the water, and Sanghyuk can still see Hongbin up on the tower. 

"Abandoning your duties?" Sanghyuk calls when Wonsik gets close enough to hear him. 

"No," Wonsik says, looking bewildered.

"I'm joking," Sanghyuk explains. Wonsik still looks baffled, like he doesn't understand why Sanghyuk would joke about such a thing. 

"Okay. I guess it wasn't funny." Sanghyuk mutters. 

"Sorry," Wonsik says, at least being nice enough to smile now. Sanghyuk shrugs, apparently he needs to be Jaehwan level ridiculous to get this crowd to laugh. 

"Listen," Wonsik says, and he starts shuffling from side to side, like he's nervous. "Hongbin and I are going into town for dinner, we were wondering if you wanted to come with?" 

He looks so hopeful, and Sanghyuk has no reason to say no. Plus, if they're in town it's even easier for him to get home. 

"Okay," he says. Wonsik grins at him, and gives a thumbs up back to where Hongbin is. Sanghyuk thinks that's adorable. 

"Cool," Wonsik nods, trying his best not to look too excited. "We'll meet you here when we're done." 

With that, Wonsik trots off. Sanghyuk has to hope that whatever he's signed himself up for tonight is less eventful than the night before, and gets him home before midnight. 

\---

Normally, the lifeguards get to leave a couple minutes before Sanghyuk and Taekwoon, but today it's too slow for them to bother staying open. Taekwoon leaves his stand around two, coming to laze around in Sanghyuk's instead. Really, it's just so he can sleep without walking all the way home, but Sanghyuk doesn't mind him being there. 

It only takes Taekwoon about an hour to decide they're going home. He's had enough of sleeping in a hot box with only a slight wind from the ocean that can barely pretend to be keeping them cool. Sanghyuk hasn't been able to go home early all summer, and he's so ready to get out of there. 

While Taekwoon locks up Sanghyuk walks over to Hongbin and Wonsik's tower. They both look miserable, and Sanghyuk snickers as he approaches. 

"Rude," Hongbin comments, staring down at him. 

"I'm going home now," Sanghyuk says, ignoring Hongbin. 

"Rude!" Hongbin yells. Wonsik, sitting beside him under the umbrella, close enough for shade but not touching, pushes him, laughing. 

"Meet us at the fountain in the town center at five?" Wonsik asks. 

"Yeah, sure." Sanghyuk agrees easily. 

"See you later." Wonsik says with a smile, waving goodbye at Sanghyuk. 

Sanghyuk waves back, walking off with a smile on his face. 

\---

The walk home is slow, Sanghyuk trudges up to his house and he feels like he's wading through something with how hot it is. Not showering this morning seems like an even bigger mistake the longer he's out in the heat. Still, he lives close, it doesn't take that long, even if the sweat he's soaked in suggests otherwise. 

His first stop when he gets home is the bathroom. He doesn't bother going to his room to get clothes to change into. He bolts up the stairs and throws open the door, kicking closed it with his foot. His clothes come off in record time, and he doesn't bother adjusting the water before he hops in the tub and turns the shower on. 

The cold water makes him jump back a bit, but it's mostly soothing. For a while he just stands under the water, letting it run over him till he's shivering slightly. He hasn't felt anything close to cool all day, and it's relieving to finally wash the nights sweat off. 

He hadn't looked at the time before he got in though, so he hurries once he's finally cooled down. He doesn't want to keep Wonsik and Hongbin waiting, and he really doesn't want to hear Hongbin complain about it. Sanghyuk wishes he would've asked what they were doing, but he supposes he'll find out soon enough. 

\---

Sanghyuk realizes, when he gets down to the fountain, that he's never seen Wonsik or Hongbin outside of their lifeguard attire. At the beach there's no reason for them to change out of it, even if it is after work hours. 

They look nice. Wonsik still cuts the sleeves and sides off his shirts, but he looks good in colors other than white. Hongbin looks so put together, wearing a button up and nice jeans, it makes Sanghyuk feel, and Wonsik look, underdressed. 

"Isn't it a little hot for that?" Sanghyuk jokes, poking Hongbin's stomach. 

"No, you're just weak." Hongbin says.

Wonsik laughs, tossing an arm around Sanghyuk's shoulders. 

"C'mon," he says, steering Sanghyuk away, "no point in arguing with him." 

Sanghyuk whines, there is a point in arguing with him, there's always a point, but he likes how Wonsik's arm feels around him, so he drops it. 

Wonsik guides them into a busy diner, done up all 50's style. It's cute, with a checkered floor and shiny cherry red booths. The woman behind the counter seems to recognize them, she waves them over, a big smile on her face. 

"Someone new with you today, sweetheart?"

"Yup," Wonsik says, smiling back, Sanghyuk thinks he sounds almost proud, "table for three today." 

"It'll be just a minute, but I'll get you one of the booths, alright?" 

"Thanks." 

"Come here often?" Sanghyuk asks. 

Wonsik nods fervently. 

"It's the best place in town." 

"Best milkshakes anywhere." Hongbin adds. 

"Anywhere?" Sanghyuk questions. 

"Yes." Hongbin says decisively, and beside him Wonsik agrees passionately. 

"Table's ready, darling." The woman who'd been talking to Wonsik earlier is back, and they follow her to a booth on the far side of the diner. 

"Aw, c'mon." Hongbin groans when they're in front of the booth. 

"I thought your new friend might like it." The woman says, winking. 

"What?" Sanghyuk, confused, stares at the booth, trying to see what the issue is. 

"On the wall, look." Wonsik says, a fond smile on his face. 

Sanghyuk squints, trying to see what they're talking about and at first, he sees nothing, just a bunch of polaroids taped to the wall. Some are obviously older than others and it isn't until he's about to give up that he sees it. It's them. 

Sanghyuk can't tell how old the picture is, but he can tell they're young. Hongbin's hair is long, curly, and he looks shyer than he is now, somehow. Wonsik has his cheek squished to Hongbin's, and he looks so genuinely happy, Sanghyuk can't help smiling. 

"It's cute," he says. 

Sanghyuk smiles, he's happy he's here, happy they brought him somewhere they seem to love so much. Even if it is a corny themed diner, he's glad they want to share it with him. 

"Hush," Hongbin says, looking away, embarrassed, "sit down so we can figure out what to order." 

"Were you going to get something different?" Wonsik asks, and he still has that same smile on his face. Small, and fond. 

"What if I am?" Hongbin grouses, and when Wonsik laughs, Sanghyuk laughs with him. 

The food is good. Sanghyuk orders a burger, with cheese and bacon, fries, and a vanilla shake. He's not expecting it to be spectacular, it's a pretty standard ordeal, but it is. The burger is cooked perfectly, the fries are crispy on the outside and soft in the middle, and the shake is true to Hongbin's endorsement. 

"Told you it was the best." Hongbin says smugly. 

Wonsik rolls his eyes, kicking Hongbin under the table. 

"Don't be an ass." 

"That hurt," Hongbin yelps, "and I'm not."

The waitress comes back, stopping the argument Sanghyuk was sure he'd have to sit through. She's got a camera in her hands, and she smiles as she holds it up. 

"We need a new one of our best customers," she says. 

Wonsik grabs Sanghyuk by the shoulders, pulling him closer and Sanghyuk turns to see him smiling at the camera. Hongbin leans forward, trying to get closer to them. 

"Smile!" she says. Really, she doesn't have to tell them, they're all smiling wide already. 

She slips the bill onto the table with one hand when she leaves, the other holding the polaroid, shaking it as she walks away, still smiling. Sanghyuk reaches into his pocket for his wallet, but Wonsik catches his arm before he gets it out. 

"I got it," he says. 

"But-" Sanghyuk starts, ready to argue, but Wonsik cuts him off.

"I asked you to dinner, let me pay." 

"Why are you fighting it?" Hongbin asks, "I always let him pay." 

"Because you're cheap." Wonsik frowns, and Hongbin laughs, shrugging. He doesn't disagree though. Sanghyuk makes a note of that, just in case. 

"Seriously," Wonsik says, "let me pay." 

"Alright," Sanghyuk says, he's not too upset about someone else paying for dinner anyway. 

"Let's go." Hongbin says, scooting out of the booth. 

When they get out of the diner Wonsik comes to stand on side of him, and Hongbin on the other. They grab his hands, freakishly in sync with one another, and lace their fingers through his. Sanghyuk blushes, and he's sure that at least Hongbin notices, but he doesn't pull away. 

Wonsik swings his arm more than Hongbin does, and it makes it almost awkward. Sanghyuk thinks his palms may be getting sweaty. It's still hot out, and they're walking, it makes sense. It's still embarrassing, even if they don't seem to mind. 

"Where are we going?" Sanghyuk asks. 

"Our place." Hongbin answers, nudging Sanghyuk. 

Sanghyuk barely avoids squeaking. This is new. They're going to Wonsik and Hongbin's house. That's not scary, and it definitely doesn't send any messages that Sanghyuk is desperately trying to decode. 

"Relax," Wonsik says quietly. "We just want to hang out more without spending more money, and we figured we've all had enough of the beach."

Sanghyuk nods, his face getting hotter as he realizes how silly he's being. Wonsik's reasoning makes perfect sense. The hand holding makes less sense now, but it's, well, it's nice. He likes it. 

They walk through downtown, and the further they walk the more confused Sanghyuk gets. 

"I thought you said we weren't going to the beach." 

"We're not," Hongbin says. 

"We live next to the beach." Wonsik supplies, since apparently Hongbin isn't capable of being helpful. 

"Must be convenient," Sanghyuk says, "but how do you afford it?"

"Rude." Hongbin scoffs.

Wonsik laughs, squeezing Sanghyuk's hand before he answers. 

"Hongbin's aunt owns a summer house down there, she lets us all rent it for a discount." 

"That's nice," Sanghyuk says sincerely, "-wait, all?" 

"Yeah, during the summer we all stay together. Taekwoon is there more than he's not, he doesn't pay though."

"The freeloader." Hongbin says. 

Sanghyuk laughs at that. He feels more comfortable about going now though. He feels a little guilty about it, but Hakyeon always looks out for him, and no one breaks an awkward mood better than Jaehwan, even when he's being awkward. 

The house is nice. It's got a big porch, and a little yard that someone is obviously taking care of. It's right on the beach, and Sanghyuk is sure Hongbin's aunt could probably be getting more money for it from someone else. He would say so, but he's used up all the times he can hear Hongbin telling him he's rude today. They drop his hands as they walk up the stairs, and Wonsik unlocks the door, holding it open for Hongbin to walk through first and Sanghyuk to follow. 

"Sanghyuk!" Hakyeon yells, running over to hug him. 

"Hey." Sanghyuk says, laughing as he hugs back. 

"I was worried about these heathens capturing you." Hakyeon sends a glare their way, and they hold their hands over their hearts, playing at being wounded. 

"Stop it," Taekwoon says. 

Hakyeon tugs at Sanghyuk's arm, pulling him over to where Jaehwan and Taekwoon are sitting. They've got the floor covered in blankets and pillows, and it's actually kind of comfortable when Sanghyuk plops down next to them.

"Don't listen to Hakyeon, he's the biggest heathen here." Jaehwan says sagely. Sanghyuk bursts into laughter, and when Hakyeon starts hitting Jaehwan he can only laugh more. 

"We were going to watch a movie." Taekwoon reminds them irritably. 

"A scary one!" Jaehwan yells, and everyone but a Hakyeon responds with an enthusiastic "yes". 

"No," Hakyeon whines, "I don't want to be scared, I don't like to be scared." 

"You can hold my hand?" Sanghyuk offers. 

"See, Sanghyuk will be there for you, now let's watch a scary movie." Hongbin says. 

Hakyeon harrumphs, clearly unhappy about the way things are going. Sanghyuk scoots closer to him, throws an arm around his shoulders and pulls him as close as he can. 

"I'll protect you," Sanghyuk declares, "It'll be fine."

"I have such confidence in you," Hongbin drawls. Sanghyuk retaliates by throwing a pillow at him, as hard as he can. Hongbin shouts, taking the same pillow and lobbing it back. Hakyeon grips onto Sanghyuk's arm, turning so he can hide his face in Sanghyuk's chest. 

"Stop it," Taekwoon snaps over everyone's howling laughter, "it's time to watch a movie." 

"What is it?" Jaehwan asks. 

"Hush." Taekwoon says without looking at him. 

"I've never heard of that movie." Jaehwan says, ready to push his luck with Taekwoon's patience. 

"Shut up." Taekwoon hisses, punching Jaehwan in the leg.

\---

The movie isn't that scary. Sanghyuk has a hard time holding in his laughter while the rest of them scream and startle. True to his word, he holds Hakyeon's hand through the entire thing, even when Hakyeon ends up in his lap, near tears and clutching at Sanghyuk like his life depends on it. Really, it's a good thing he's not scared, because none of the rest of them will get up to turn on a light when it's over. 

"Turn them all on!" Hakyeon shouts, grabbing Jaehwan to be his replacement for Sanghyuk. 

 

Sanghyuk laughs, not bothering to hold back since the movie is over. 

“Just one,” he says, “it’ll be fine.”

“But what about the ghosts?” Hakyeon wails. 

“I’ll save you.” Sanghyuk smirks, returning to his seat beside Hakyeon, who keeps his grip on Jaehwan with one arm and grabs Sanghyuk with the other. 

“I demand unscary things now.” Hakyeon says grumpily, a pout on his face. 

Wonsik gets up, untangling himself from Hongbin and pushing Taekwoon away from him. He walks over to the DVD player and sorts through a few things before turning around with a triumphant smile on his face.

“Puppy bowl time.” 

“What?” Sanghyuk throws his unoccupied hand up in confusion. “You have that on DVD?”

 

“Yeah, so what?” Hakyeon challenges. 

“I didn’t even know you could get that.” 

“Of course you can,” Hakyeon bumps his shoulder into Sanghyuk’s, unwilling to let go of his or Jaehwan’s arm so he can hit him properly, “Wonsik, start it, don’t listen to this naysayer.”

“Naysayer?” Sanghyuk snorts, “Really?”

Hakyeon huffs at him, scooting down so he’s laying and pulling Sanghyuk with him. Within moments, everyone else is laying down, and the puppy bowl is started. Hakyeon has thrown one of legs over Sanghyuk’s, his head rests on Sanghyuk’s chest, and it’s surprisingly comfortable. Wonsik is on his other side, pressed close to him, and between the two of them and the blanket, Sanghyuk is warm. He’s starting to feel drowsy, but he doesn’t want to fall asleep here. 

 

A quick look around shows that Taekwoon and Jaehwan are already sleeping, and from the way Hakyeon’s breathing has evened out. He’ll probably be asleep soon, it would be rude to move him. Sanghyuk finds the announcer voice coming from the television annoying, and usually that would stop him from falling asleep, but he feels so tired and at home, that he drifts off before he realizes it. 

\---

Sanghyuk’s has spent all summer being at beach almost every single day, and not once has he built sandcastles or looked for crabs and other small creatures. Sanghyuk doesn’t think it’s too big of a deal, he’s done that plenty of times in his life, but when Jaehwan and Hakyeon hear him say it, they are personally offended at his lack of beach going fun. 

“What do you mean?” Hakyeon is staring at him with narrowed eyes, and over in the corner Taekwoon is trying to hide his giggles, which is not working at all. 

“Sanghyuk hates fun.” Jaehwan sing-songs. 

“I do not hate fun,” Sanghyuk argues, “I’m all about fun, but it’s not like I’m five. I don’t need to do those things.”

“Yes you do.” Hakyeon responds. 

“Five year olds know how to party.” Jaehwan adds. 

Taekwoon is close to tears at this point, and Sanghyuk is nowhere close to amused. 

“Fine, let’s go party like five year olds. I’ll bring the juice boxes.

“Nothing wrong with juice boxes.” Hakyeon says crossly. 

“Should I grab some animal crackers too?”

“Yes.” Taekwoon says, entirely too serious for the conversation. 

“Don’t let Taekwoon near them,” Hakyeon warns, “he’ll eat them all.”

“I know,” Sanghyuk says, “I have met him before.”

Taekwoon throws one of the coins he’s counting at Sanghyuk. He doesn’t mind, at least he’s not laughing at him anymore. 

“Tonight,” Hakyeon says with finality, “it’s sandcastles and finding gross ocean creatures time.”

“If you think they’re gross why are we looking for them?” Sanghyuk asks, hoping to talk Hakyeon out of it, even though he knows by now that it’s basically impossible. 

“Tonight!” Hakyeon says loudly, walking away to avoid any more argument, which is really unfair. 

“What I don’t want to?” Sanghyuk mutters. 

“I warned you.” Taekwoon says. He’s facing away from Sanghyuk, but he can still tell he’s smiling. Sanghyuk throws the coin back at him. 

\---

Hakyeon runs off at the end of his shift, he doesn’t tell anyone where he’s going so when Sanghyuk goes to meet the rest of them with Taekwoon he can’t help but feel a little irritated. 

“What do you mean he just took off?” Sanghyuk glares at them, like they should know exactly where is, or should’ve at least asked some more questions.

“He wouldn’t say,” Wonsik insists, “he only said he had to do something and that he’d be back soon.”

“This isn’t right.” Sanghyuk grumbles, glaring at all of them. 

Hongbin, unapologetic as always, sticks his tongue out Sanghyuk, and takes Wonsik arm so they can move closer to the water.

“Let’s go find things to scare Hakyeon with,” he calls over his shoulder, and that, Sanghyuk can agree to. 

They walk slowly down to the rocks closer to the water’s edge, doing their best not to get their feet stuck anywhere. It’s difficult. Sand is awful, and he imagines after tonight he’ll have to soak in a bath for hours to get it completely off of him. 

Hongbin crouches down next to the first loose rock he sees, lifting it up gently. 

“Yes,” he exclaims, reaching into the muck and retrieving a small purple crab. He holds it toward Sanghyuk, pincers facing away from himself. “Hakyeon doesn’t like it when you hold them.”

“Don’t crabs pinch?” Sanghyuk asks, wary. 

“Yeah, if you stick your hands in their claws.” Hongbin says, rolling his eyes. He grabs another with his other hand and walks toward Sanghyuk awkwardly, legs bent and spread apart. He’s walking sideways, and oh- Sanghyuk realizes what’s happening. Hongbin is pretending to be a crab. Hongbin is an ass. 

“You’re so funny.” Sanghyuk sneers. Apparently, he is, even Taekwoon is laughing, head on his knees where he’s crouched down to poke at the crabs. “I didn’t sign up for this.”

“You didn’t really sign up for any of this.” Wonsik points out. Sanghyuk is tempted to throw him into water, but he’s wearing swim clothes so it’s not as much of a threat as it should be. 

“I’m here!” 

Everyone turns to see Hakyeon barrelling down the beach. He’s got a bag in each hand, Sanghyuk can’t tell what’s in them from this distance, but Hakyeon is moving so quickly he’ll know soon enough. 

“Sorry it took so long!” Hakyeon holds up one of his bags, and Sanghyuk can see it’s filled with plastic tools for the sand, “I knew these were in the house somewhere but I couldn’t find them at all.”

“What’s in the other bag?” Taekwoon asks suspiciously. 

“Food,” Hakyeon holds the bag behind his back, “and you can wait.” 

Jaehwan grabs the bag of sand tools out of Hakyeon’s hand and dumps out onto the sand. There’s a couple shovels, and some buckets in different shapes. 

“Bet I can build the biggest one.” Jaehwan boasts, grabbing a shovel in one hand and a bucket in the other and lifting them over his head. 

“No way.” Wonsik rises to the challenge, scrambling up to grab a bucket and shovel for himself. 

“Teams!” Hakyeon yells. 

“Alright,” Jaehwan says, “I call Taekwoon.”

“Fine,” Wonsik retorts, “I call Sanghyuk.”

“Well, then I call Hongbin.” Jaehwan has a victorious smile on, and Sanghyuk isn’t sure why. Wonsik appears to crumble. 

“No,” he groans, “don’t stick me with Hakyeon again.”

“Hey,” Hakyeon shouts, “I’m good at building sand castles.”

“Okay, fine.” Wonsik stands up straight, picking up two more buckets and shovels and pushing them into Sanghyuk’s and Hakyeon’s hands. He turns to glare at Jaehwan before motioning the two of them away, and whispering conspiratorially. “We have to building one with a sound structure.”

“He just said the biggest, not the tallest.” Sanghyuk points out.

“Brilliant!” Wonsik says, a glint in his eye that Sanghyuk’s never seen before. “Let’s get to work.” 

All castles have moats, so Sanghyuk starts by drawing a giant square in the sand. He shovels with a fervor, walking around and around, taking one shovelful of sand with each step. Wonsik sits on his knees on one side of the castle, Hakyeon on the other. Together they start to build on top of the sand left in the middle of Sanghyuk’s moat. 

“Sanghyuk, go fill this bucket with water.” Hakyeon says. Sanghyuk doesn’t like to be bossed around, but the competitive bug that got that glint in Wonsik’s eye has bitten him too. He nods, grabbing the bucket and running down to the water’s edge. He moves a little slower on the way back, careful not to drop any of the water he’s collected. 

Once he’s deemed the moat deep enough, Sanghyuk starts to help with the structure of the castle. He hasn’t really looked to see how the other three are doing, an occasional glance, usually when he hears Jaehwan yell. No matter how competitive the three of them might be, nothing compares to how Taekwoon gets. Sanghyuk isn’t sure why Jaehwan picked him if he was only going to goof around. Sometimes, Sanghyuk is sure Jaehwan just likes bothering him. 

Eventually, the top of the castle starts to fall apart, and no matter how much they wet the sand and try to compact it, it still falls. The moat means that they can’t really add more to the sides, which in hindsight may have been a reason not to have one, but all castles have moats, so he had to make one. 

“Let’s go see how they’re doing over there.” Hakyeon says. He’s been curious the whole time, sneaking looks and trying to walk over to see before Wonsik caught him and told him to get back to work. The three of them walk over together now, giving up on making their own castle any bigger. 

Turns out, it’s alright. Hongbin is on the ground, howling with laughter, next to a broken sand castle, and an absolutely fuming Taekwoon. At first, he doesn’t see Jaehwan, but then Taekwoon starts jogging down the beach and Sanghyuk spots him.

“What happened?” Wonsik asks. Hongbin can barely answer, he’s laughing so hard. 

“Jaehwan-” he manages, “threw Taekwoon into the castle- because ah- because he was being bossy.” 

“He’s gonna die.” Sanghyuk whispers.

“Yup.” Wonsik agrees. 

“Oh, god.” Hakyeon says, chasing after them, and yelling, “Taekwoon!”

“Should we help?” Sanghyuk will admit, he’s a little worried. 

“Nah,” Hongbin says, “let’s go see what food Hakyeon brought.”

“Good plan.” Wonsik nods, putting his arms around Hongbin’s and Sanghyuk’s shoulders and pulling them close. 

\---

Sanghyuk fully intends to spend his day off doing nothing but lazing around the house and playing video games. He's prepared. He bought snacks last night, and he's had all the numbers for the best delivery food memorized since high school. There is nothing that's getting him out of the house today. Strong words and good intentions keep him from checking his phone, even though it's been vibrating steadily since he woke up. He knows it's not his mom, so he's not going to look at it. 

He's in the middle of grabbing something to drink from the kitchen when a knock at the door startles him. Sanghyuk groans, he doesn't have a shirt on, just a pair of sweats. He supposes he should be thankful he has at least that on. 

He only opens the door slightly, enough to stick his head out while the rest of him stays hidden. Sanghyuk groans again when he sees who's there, he shouldn't have answered the door at all. 

"You weren't answering the phone." Wonsik says sheepishly. 

"Which is rude." Hongbin adds. 

"Yeah, rude," echoes Jaehwan. 

Taekwoon sighs long sufferingly, but says nothing. 

"Let us in!" Hakyeon insists. Sanghyuk hadn't even seen him yet. 

"Uh," he starts, looking awkwardly at all the people on his door step, "I'm kinda busy?" 

"Yeah," Hongbin snorts, "really busy." 

"Are you going to let us in or not?" Hakyeon pushes his way to front, glaring at Sanghyuk with his hands on his hips. 

"Fine." Sanghyuk holds open his door, figuring he might as well give up because they sure as hell aren't going to. 

"What were you doing?" Wonsik asks. 

"Nothing." Hongbin deadpans. 

"You're hilarious, has anyone ever told you that?" Sanghyuk rolls his eyes. 

"You're not wearing a shirt." Taekwoon observes, and honestly Sanghyuk had forgotten. 

"You don't have to put on one." Hakyeon says with a smile, eyeing Sanghyuk way too obviously. 

"Why are you here?" Sanghyuk whines, holding his arms over his chest. 

"The rest of the views not bad." Jaehwan comments. Sanghyuk whines louder in response. 

"You wouldn't pick up your phone." Hakyeon reminds him hotly. 

"Yes," Sanghyuk says slowly, "because I was busy." 

"Don't lie." Hongbin scowls. 

"We're having a barbecue, you should come." Hakyeon ignores Hongbin completely, making Sanghyuk snort.

"But I-" 

"Please." Hakyeon begs, cutting Sanghyuk off. 

"Ugh, fine." 

"Great!" Hakyeon beams at him, clapping his hands. "Go get ready, we'll wait." 

"I could just meet you later." Sanghyuk's voice trails off uncertainly. 

"Nice try." Taekwoon offers. 

"I can join you in the shower?" Jaehwan winks at him. 

That gets Sanghyuk going. He goes up the stairs quickly, grabbing clothes from his room before jumping into the shower. He's nervous about leaving them in his living room. He's not worried about them breaking anything, but his mom leaves the family photo albums on one of the bookshelves, and Sanghyuk is not interested in the teasing that would ensue if they found them. 

He's out of the shower and dressed in about fifteen minutes, which is apparently still ample time to find the photo albums. 

"Aw, Sanghyuk, you were so cute." Hongbin mockingly calls as bolts down the stairs. 

"Give that here," he says sternly, holding out his hands, "don't you know it's rude to go through people's things?" 

"But you were so cute." Hakyeon's voice lacks any trace of teasing, and beside him Taekwoon makes a noise of agreement, a soft smile on his face as they look at a five year old Sanghyuk. 

"Don't listen to Hongbin," Wonsik says, nodding like he's imparting a great wisdom. 

"I never do," Sanghyuk jokes. 

"Hey." Hongbin says, glaring at him. 

"Did you hear something?" Sanghyuk asks the room at large. 

"No," Jaehwan says, looking at Sanghyuk in confusion, "did you hear something?" 

"I thought I did," Sanghyuk scratches his head, pretending to be troubled, "you know, sometimes my neighbors dog gets into the trash." 

"Trash sure is noisy." Jaehwan says. 

"Hey!" Hongbin shouts, picking up two of the throw pillows on Sanghyuk's couch and launching them at Sanghyuk and Jaehwan. "You assholes." 

Unable to keep up the charade, Sanghyuk and Jaehwan dissolve into giggles. 

"Put that back and let's go before my mom comes home." Sanghyuk says when he regains his composure. 

Hongbin, still glaring, is the first out the door. Jaehwan cackles, following the rest of them out. Sanghyuk makes sure to lock the door as he goes. He left a note on the counter so his mom knows where he is. He's not sure this what she had in mind when she helped him get this summer job, he's barely home anymore, but she hasn't complained yet. 

\---

Sanghyuk isn't great at cooking, the past year at college has really shown him that it's not as easy as it looks, so really, he's not the best candidate to be helping Hakyeon and Jaehwan in the kitchen. It's what he's stuck with though, since Wonsik and Hongbin volunteered first for the booze run, and Taekwoon pushes anyone that comes near the grill away. 

"Maybe you should be on dish duty." Hakyeon says, looking at Sanghyuk's poorly cut potatoes and eggs. 

"It's fine," Jaehwan says as he glances over, "we're mixing them together anyway, it doesn't have to be perfect." 

Hakyeon shoots him a scandalized look, like the potatoes being in uneven chunks and the eggs crumbling is actually the worst thing that could happen. 

"Clean up." Hakyeon says, ignoring Jaehwan and pushing Sanghyuk towards the sink. Sanghyuk doesn't see how this is fair. They come to his house, interrupt his day, drag him to their barbecue, and then make him clean. The nerve of some people. 

"I see Hakyeon roped you into cleaning." Wonsik leans against the counter next to the sink, a smile on his face. Behind him, Hongbin drops two bags on the floor. They clatter loudly, nothing seems to break, but Hakyeon tuts at him anyway. 

"Where's the music?" Wonsik asks the room, pushing himself off the counter. "What kind of barbecue doesn't have music?" 

"I didn't know that was a requirement." Sanghyuk says loudly over the sound of the sink. 

"Of course it is." Wonsik replies. He leaves the room for a moment and comes back with his laptop and a set of portable speakers. He sets them on the dining room table, the open layout of the house means they'll be able to hear the music in the kitchen. Wonsik plugs the speakers in and fiddled around with laptop for a minute before he chooses what to play. Sanghyuk doesn't recognize it, it's some old R&B song that he probably knows, but won't be able to place before the chorus kicks in. 

"I think we're almost done with the food." Hakyeon places his last bowl on the counter, a serving utensil in each one. He's got a stack of plates and utensils on end of the counter, along with napkins. 

"I'll set up the drinks." Hongbin says, grabbing the bags he just brought in and bringing them over to the table where Wonsik is, still fussing over his laptop. He comes back a moment later, grabbing glasses and a couple bottles of mixer from the fridge. 

"Is that all we have?" Hakyeon asks, more concerned than Sanghyuk thinks is really necessary. 

"No, we bought more," Hongbin says, setting everything down on the table. 

"Oh, good." Hakyeon places the back of his hand on his forehead, clearly relieved. Sanghyuk laughs, moving away from the sink now that he's finished all the dishes they used to cook. 

Hongbin lines all the drinks up on the table. There's a case of beer, and a variety of bottles on one side, and mixers on the other, with the glasses in the middle. 

"Someone get Taekwoon in here, it's pre-dinner shots time." Hakyeon prances over to the table, taking six shot glasses and opening a bottle of tequila. 

"That's a thing?" Sanghyuk asks incredulously. 

"It is if you're Hakyeon." Taekwoon says from behind him, Jaehwan's hand on his wrist as he tugs him inside. 

"Everyone," Hakyeon holds his hands up, getting their attention, "take a glass." 

They all do as their told, holding the shot glass in their hand as they wait for further instruction. 

"To tonight!" Hakyeon yells, holding his glass above his head. They all echo him, raising their glass briefly before downing it. Jaehwan whoops, slamming his glass down on the table and the others follow suit. Sanghyuk feels giddy, and he can tell from everyones smiles that they're feeling the same way. 

"Food!" Hongbin yells, raising an invisible glass and bolting to the kitchen. Once again, there's a chorusing shout. 

\---

"Let's play spin the bottle." Hakyeon says after he downs his beer, setting the bottle on the blanket covered living room floor. 

"I thought this was a barbecue, not a high school sleep over." Hongbin says. 

"You don't wanna kiss me?" Hakyeon pouts. 

"No." 

"Yes, he does," Wonsik, new to the conversation, drops down next to Hongbin on the floor. 

"What's happening?" Sanghyuk asks, he hasn't really been paying attention. They've put a good dent in the alcohol that Wonsik and Hongbin bought earlier, and his head is feeling fuzzy. He's discovered that Taekwoon is a cuddly drunk, and he's having a hard time focussing on conversations with Taekwoon's head in has lap. His hair is nice, and he doesn't seem to mind Sanghyuk playing with it. It's distracting him from paying attention to anything else. 

"Hakyeon wants kisses." Wonsik tells him. 

"I didn't say that!" Hakyeon shrieks. 

"It's what you meant though." Jaehwan says. He's sitting next to Hakyeon, which is really a mistake if he's going to tease him. Hakyeon whacks him in the side, mumbling something that Sanghyuk can't quite make out. 

"He wants to play spin the bottle." Hongbin says. 

"Well, we have a bottle!" Hakyeon attempts to defend himself. 

"Why don't you just kiss?" Sanghyuk says, he doesn't look up, still focused on Taekwoon. 

"We do that all the time," Hakyeon complains, "spin the bottle makes it more fun."

"You kiss all the time?" Sanghyuk's head snaps up, that catches his attention. 

"Uh," Wonsik stammers, "what he means is-" 

"We kiss all the time." Hongbin cuts Wonsik off, and Wonsik elbows him in the ribs for his trouble. 

"Oh." Sanghyuk says, looking back down to Taekwoon. He's smiling, completely relaxed, and Sanghyuk's not sure if he's listening to what's happening around him at all. The room is silent now though, and Sanghyuk lets what Hongbin said sink in. 

"Wait," he says, his brain working much slower than normal, "you all kiss all the time?" 

"Yes." Wonsik answers hesitantly. 

"You just kiss?" Sanghyuk guffaws, disbelieving that they all live together and just kiss. 

"That's what concerns you?" Hongbin laughs, ducking his head down. 

"Well, it's not really my business but-" 

"I could make it your business." Jaehwan offers, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. 

"Jaehwan," Wonsik admonishes, "don't spring that on him." 

"He's a big boy." Jaehwan counters. 

"You wanna find out?" Sanghyuk offers. The sentence is out of his mouth before he realizes what he says, and the shock on Wonsik's face mirrors the shock on his own. Hongbin and Jaehwan start laughing, but Hakyeon, he doesn't laugh, and he doesn't look shocked. He's staring straight at Sanghyuk, that smirk on his face that tells Sanghyuk he's in for something. 

"What if I do?" Hakyeon says slyly. 

"Oh no." Wonsik mutters, hiding his face in his hands. Hongbin watches them sharply, his laughter falling away as he sees where this could go. 

Taekwoon sits up, and Sanghyuk hopes he doesn't go away, he never likes staying up late. He doesn't move after that, just sits up and looks at Sanghyuk for a moment. It's long enough for Sanghyuk to start squirming, uncomfortable with having Taekwoon staring at him without saying or doing anything. Taekwoon must notice, because his hand comes up to cradle the back of Sanghyuk's head, and he tilts Sanghyuk's head down gently, meeting him halfway. 

Sanghyuk hasn't kissed anyone in a while, but he's not expecting the shudder that runs through him. He brings his hands up to Taekwoon's shoulders without thinking about it, trying to get himself closer to Taekwoon. He doesn't let Sanghyuk rush the kiss, even though Sanghyuk's sure he can feel the eagerness coursing through him. He pulls away before Sanghyuk is ready, and he tries to lean forward again, but Taekwoon stops him. 

"Are you sure?" he says, quietly. Sanghyuk glances around the room, they're all looking at him, but no one has a made move yet. Hakyeon has his hands balled into fists at his sides, like restraining himself is taking real physical effort. 

"Yes," Sanghyuk says, looking back at them, and then turning to Taekwoon again, "yes." 

Taekwoon lets him go, sitting back and pushing him towards Hakyeon. Hakyeon is already moving, trying to get close to him, and they meet each other in the middle. Sanghyuk wraps his arms around Hakyeon's neck, kissing him immediately. Hakyeon's hands go to his back, smoothing down until they get to his ass. Kissing Hakyeon is nothing like kissing Taekwoon, the intensity is still there, but it's different. He can't pin point what it is, and he doesn't have time to dwell on it, because another pair of hands are on his stomach. 

Sanghyuk breaks away from Hakyeon, and turns his head to be greeted with Hongbin's face. He tilts back further, resting on Hongbin's solid chest. Hongbin comes in closer, the angle is awkward, all wrong for the kiss to last long, but he's too distracted anyway. Hongbin's hands are tracing circles around his hips, and Hakyeon's kissing at his neck, nipping gently. 

He's so warm, caught between the two of them, that he almost whimpers when Hongbin pulls away. He doesn't go far, staying at his side so he can still have his hands on Sanghyuk's thighs. The back of his thighs are sensitive, even though his pants, and he gasps when Hongbin runs his hands up and down them. 

Wonsik replaces Hongbin behind him, he moves slow and gentle, placing soft kisses on the back of his neck, moving his hands cautiously on Sanghyuk's body. It seems fitting that Wonsik is so caring in this situation, that he's moving so slow. 

Jaehwan takes his time moving over to Sanghyuk, appreciating the view he makes stuck between the other three. Sanghyuk's face is flushed, and his hands move constantly, he can't decide where he should touch. It's all so new, and he wants to touch all of them at once, the fact that he can't is truly unfair. 

Jaehwan tugs at the bottom of Sanghyuk's shirt, and the others get the message, moving back slightly so Jaehwan can tug it over his head. There's a collective inhale, all of them staring at Sanghyuk. Wonsik rushes to throw his own shirt over his head, everyone else only a step behind. 

"You good?" Jaehwan whispers into Sanghyuk's ear, and when he feels Sanghyuk nod, he bites at his ear lobe, tugging a little. 

Hands are back on Sanghyuk in an instant, he doesn't bother trying to decide who it is. His mind, already clouded from the alcohol, is even more muddled now. He can only focus on how good it feels, to have skin on skin contact, to touch all of them freely. 

Hakyeon is in front of him again, looking him in the eyes. He grabs the waist of Sanghyuk's pants, his finger tips touching bare skin. 

"Can I?" he asks. 

"Yes," Sanghyuk breathes, hips bucking forward. 

Hakyeon smiles, letting his fingers trail over Sanghyuk's hip bones till they get to the button of his jeans. He moves slowly, popping the button and letting his knuckles drag over Sanghyuk as he pulls the zipper down. 

Sanghyuk either has to lay down or stand up to take his pants all the way off, and he doesn't really trust his legs right now, so he falls to his side. Hakyeon stays upright, grabbing Sanghyuk's jeans and pulling them all the way off. The collective inhale is louder this time, the breathing in the room more ragged now. 

"You're beautiful." Wonsik whispers, laying down on one side of him. He kisses Sanghyuk's chest, trailing down his ribs and back up till he reaches his mouth. Sanghyuk sighs into the kiss, content. He's so caught up he doesn't notice Jaehwan on his other side until he feels a kiss on his collar bone. He turns to look, smiling at Jaehwan as he kisses a similar path on his body to Wonsik. 

Hongbin lays behind Wonsik, spooning him, and reaching over him to continue tracing patterns over his hips and thighs. Sanghyuk touches Hongbin's wrist, not able to do much else in the position they're in, but wanting Hongbin to know he's noticed him somehow. 

Sanghyuk's feels someone between his legs, pushing them further apart and he lets them spread with ease. Hakyeon aligns their bodies, laying on top of him so he can kiss him again. Sanghyuk grinds upwards, pressing his cock into Hakyeon's hip. Hakyeon chuckles, breaking the kiss to bump his nose against Sanghyuk's. 

"Can I suck you off?" he asks. 

"Fuck," Sanghyuk whispers, eyes closing for a moment, "yes, yes, please." 

Hakyeon laughs at that, pushing himself up so he can scoot back down Sanghyuk's body so he's laying between his legs. Sanghyuk looks, and Hakyeon is staring at him, his tongue darting out to wet his lips, and Sanghyuk can't stop himself from moaning. 

Hakyeon grips the base of Sanghyuk's cock with his hand, and Sanghyuk can't look anymore, his head falling backwards against the pillow. Sanghyuk feels Hakyeon's mouth at him, slow at first. Hakyeon bobs his head, going further down each time. Sanghyuk's hips twitch, and he tries to control himself, but it's so hard with Hakyeon making him feel so good. 

Hongbin's hand grips onto one of his hips, stopping their previous patterns, and Jaehwan moves to hold down the other. Wonsik has given up trying to kiss him, Sanghyuk can't hold the kiss for longer than a moment, not with how deep Hakyeon is taking him now. Wonsik settles for kissing his neck, sometimes going down to his collar bones. 

Sanghyuk isn't loud, but the room is quiet, and the noises he does make are only masked by the sounds Hakyeon makes while he gets Sanghyuk off. It gets the rest of them even more worked, restless because they aren't getting enough. Sanghyuk is too far gone to help them, even with Hongbin and Jaehwan's hands on his hips he still manages to move more than Hakyeon would like. 

Sanghyuk can't stop himself from getting louder, and he reaches down to tangle his hand in Hakyeon's hair. 

"Close," he manages to say, trying to get Hakyeon to pull off. 

"It's okay," Wonsik says into his neck, "Hakyeon likes it." 

Sanghyuk whines, loud and embarrassing, but he can't help it. Hakyeon wants him to- wants him to come in his mouth, and if he's ever heard anything hotter he honestly can't say what it is. The thought alone is enough, his heart beat races and he feels a new wave of heat roll over him as he comes. 

Sanghyuk doesn't move. He knows it's not the best thing to do, but he's so tired. Jaehwan kisses him on the forehead, rolling away a second later. He hears Hakyeon squeal and feels him being pulled away. Wonsik and Hongbin roll away as well, Sanghyuk can hear them whispering, but he can't tell what they're saying. 

Sanghyuk whimpers, he doesn't want to be alone now, not after that. 

"Shh," Taekwoon whispers, coming to lay down next to him, "I got you." 

Sanghyuk turns into Taekwoon's embrace, tangling their legs together. He can already tell he'll be asleep in moments. 

\---

In theory, a summer job is great. In theory, a summer job at the beach is even greater. In practice, Sanghyuk never gets alone time anymore. He has a quiet boss, who is mostly nice, but prone to throwing things at him. There's a lot of lifeguards. There's a lot of really hot life guards, and they all live to annoy him, but they also bring him lunch sometimes. They steal kisses during break times, and hold his hand while they walk home. They make bad jokes that still make Sanghyuk laugh, and most importantly, they help prove Sanghyuk's theory right.


End file.
